


You Can’t Outgrow Goats

by MoonCat457



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Magical, Established Relationship, Fluff, Goats, M/M, Marauders Era (Harry Potter), RSCandyHearts, Valentine's Day, Valentine's Day Fluff, Zoo
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-15 15:01:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,023
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29437950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoonCat457/pseuds/MoonCat457
Summary: Sirius takes Remus on a Valentine’s Day date to the National Zoo.
Relationships: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Comments: 8
Kudos: 53
Collections: The Candy Hearts Challenge





	You Can’t Outgrow Goats

**Author's Note:**

> Written for [goodboylupin](https://archiveofourown.org/users/somebetterwords/pseuds/goodboylupin)’s RS Candy Hearts Mini-fest.  
>   
> Prompt: GOAT  
>   
> I realize that my prompt was probably meant to be GOAT as in “Greatest Of All Time”, but the first thing that popped into my head was literal goats, so it’s what I went with.

“Alright, Pete, I’m heading out,” Remus announced as he closed his creaky closet door.

Peter looked up from his laptop, startled. “Whoa, is it noon already?”

Remus chuckled. “Yeah, Pete. You should probably take a break from your paper. It’ll be there after you eat… and maybe take a nap.”

Peter scrubbed a hand over his face. “I’m almost done, I promise. Should I expect you to be back tonight?”

“Probably not.” Remus stopped in front of his dorm room sink to check his reflection one more time. He looked a little tired, understandable since he’d been pulling all-nighters for the past week, and his tawny curls were a bit haphazard, but his boyfriend liked them that way anyway, so he didn’t bother trying to do anything with them.

“Tell Sirius I say hi!” Peter said, turning his attention back to his laptop.

“Will do.” Remus grabbed his jacket off the Command hook by the door and slipped it on before calling behind him to his roommate, “Remember to take a break!”

The door slammed shut behind him, and he made his way outside his building. Thankfully, it was unseasonably warm for February, so Remus’ denim jacket—the one with leather sleeves that Sirius had gotten him to provide more protection while riding on his motorcycle—provided enough warmth. It didn’t take him long to spot Sirius, standing on the curb and leaning against his midnight blue motorcycle. Sirius’ face lit up instantly upon seeing Remus walking toward him, something that even after nearly two years together, Remus hadn’t quite gotten used to.

“You know you’re in a no-standing zone, right?” Remus said with a smirk.

“I’m not standing. I’m leaning.” Sirius flashed a cheeky grin and winked before pulling Remus into a hug. Remus tightly wound his arms around Sirius’ neck, lifting him on his toes a bit, and burrowed his face into his long, black wavy hair.

“I haven’t seen you all week. I missed you,” Sirius whispered.

Remus let out a content sigh as Sirius pressed a kiss to his temple. “I know, I’m sorry. This semester is kicking my ass. I’ve slept maybe twenty hours collectively this week.”

Sirius hummed and squeezed him a little tighter around the waist. “It’s okay, baby. It’s kicking my ass, too.”

They clutch to each other for a few more moments before Sirius pulled back. “Hopefully, what I have planned today will be a nice break, though.”

Remus smiled and twisted a strand of Sirius’ hair around his finger idly. “What is the plan?”

Sirius quickly dropped a kiss to the corner of Remus’ mouth. “It’s a surprise.”

“Of course it is,” Remus teased fondly.

Sirius smirked, stepped away, and tossed the spare helmet at Remus before winding his hair into a messy bun at the nape of his neck. “Quiet you, or I’ll make you keep your eyes closed the whole way there.”

It took them nearly forty minutes to get to their destination because of D.C. traffic, but Remus didn’t mind that much. Riding on Sirius’ bike was one of his favorite activities. Mostly because it gave him an excuse to wrap his arms tightly around Sirius’ waist. Not that he needed an excuse anymore, but the reason was nice back in their junior year before they got together. When they pulled off Beach Drive into parking lot D, Sirius put the bike in park and took off his helmet.

Remus followed suit and swung his leg over the bike first to let Sirius get off. “Your surprise is the National Zoo?” he teased lightly.

Sirius pouted slightly. “I thought you loved the zoo.”

Remus softened and reached out to lace their fingers together. “I do. I’m just a little surprised that you didn’t plan something more classic valentines-y.” He paused to press a quick kiss to Sirius’s frown, which had deepened. “But this is perfect. This is exactly what I needed.”

Sirius smiled as they started to make their way to the closest entrance, which put them near the great cats’ exhibit. “That’s partially why I picked it. I thought you might appreciate something low key since you’ve been so stressed with school—how stressed both of us have been, honestly.”

Remus squeezed his hand. “And like always, you thought correct.” They stopped in front of the tiger pen and spent a few minutes looking for the elusive animal before finally spotting it under a tree, sleeping.

“Wait,” Remus said, “so what’s the other reason you picked the zoo?”

Sirius shrugged and used his free hand to pull his hair out of the messy bun. “I guess I was feeling sentimental since the zoo was our first date.” Remus gave him a weird look, and he quickly added, “I know, I’m lame.”

“Okay, let’s get one thing straight,” Remus began seriously, “you’re not lame. If our first date was actually the zoo, that would be completely sweet. But our first date was a movie.”

Something glinted in Sirius’ eyes as he grinned down at Remus. “Ah, except it wasn’t. Remember spring of junior year?”

Remus stared at him for a long moment, then realization dawned on him. “Sirius, that wasn’t a date. That was a field trip!”

“Stuff can be two things.”

Remus let his hand drop from Sirius’ as he turned to face him. “Don’t ‘Jake Peralta’ logic me.” He poked a finger at Sirius’ chest. “We were there for a class; it doesn’t count.”

“Okay, yeah, but we held hands!” Sirius protested.

Remus’ stern face wavered as he smiled. It had been more like nervously linking their fingers every so often, but Sirius had a point, although that still didn’t mean it was a date, and Remus said as much.

“I also bought you ice cream and that little stuffed wolf you still keep on your bed—“

“Okay, true, but still—“

“And you kissed me.”

Remus blushed and looked down. They’d been dancing around each other for the entire school year at that point. Then they’d spent the whole day together basically holding hands, and Sirius had surprised Remus by buying him a grey wolf stuffed animal while he was in the bathroom, and finally, things just boiled over. Remus wasn’t sure what to say, so he’d just leaned up and kissed Sirius right on the mouth. Well, actually, he sort of missed and got the corner of his mouth, then freaked out, apologized, and tried to run. Thankfully, Sirius stopped him, smiled, and told him he missed before kissing him for real.

“So, by my count,” Sirius continued, holding up his fingers and ticking things off as he spoke, “we had a fun activity, a meal where one person paid, and a kiss. That makes it a date, school field trip notwithstanding.”

Remus sighed and shook his head, then pulled Sirius close by his leather jacket’s lapel to kiss him soundly. “Okay, fine. Maybe it was a date, so technically our first date, but it wasn’t our first official date, and we’re sticking to that.”

“No, that’s still the one where we spent the entirety of Age of Ultron making out,” he said, kissing Remus again, quickly since there was a family with children coming up the path toward them.

Remus smirked. “It was the weakest of the Avengers movies, anyway.”

—

They made a loop through most of the zoo, stopping halfway through to get Dippin’ Dots as they did on their first unofficial date—Sirius’ treat again despite Remus’ protests.

When they were done, Sirius gathered their trash and stood. “I’ll throw this out, then I’m going to head to the bathroom. I’ll be back.”

“I’ll be here,” Remus said with a smile, squeezing Sirius’ hand once before letting him walk away.

Sirius nodded and tossed the trash in the bin, then made his way to the bathrooms they’d passed on the way to the café. A few minutes later, he returned to the café to find Remus standing near a souvenir kiosk, his hands behind his back and a brilliant grin on his face.

“Oh no, that’s your mischief smile,” Sirius teased.

“I don’t have a mischief smile,” Remus protested. “You’re the mischievous one, remember?”

“Oh, I call bullshit on that one. You are plenty mischievous. It’s one of the reasons I fell for you. Now, what’s behind your back?”

“Close your eyes,” Remus instructed.

Sirius sighed dramatically but closed his eyes and held out his hands. He felt a soft plushy weight in his hands and opened his eyes to see a small wolf stuffed animal, like the one he’d gotten Remus nearly two years ago, except this one was black.

“Now we match. I can be romantic, too.”

Sirius stared at the plush, then looked back to Remus and laughed. God, he loved this boy. He bent his head to press a series of soft kisses to Remus’ lips. “I love it. Does he have a name?”

“Padfoot.”

Sirius grinned and kissed him again. “Perfect.”

Remus grinned proudly and laced their fingers together so they could continue working their way back to the parking lot since they’d seen all of the exhibits, except for the reptiles, because they’d both decided that snakes weren’t worth looking at. They passed the great cats exhibit again and were nearly at the parking lot when Sirius caught a glimpse of the petting zoo sign and pulled them to a stop.

“What is it?” Remus asked.

Sirius pointed at the sign. “We missed one.”

Remus chuckled. “Aren’t we a little old for petting zoos?”

“You can’t outgrow goats,” Sirius retorted. Remus’ eyes lit up. “Thought so.”

Remus pulled Sirius down the path with new excitement, past the cows, alpacas, and donkeys straight for the pen with the goats. They stood at a distance for a few moments, letting the small children at the fence finish feeding and petting the goats. The children cleared, and Remus went up to the fence and leaned on it to watch one of the goats clumsily jump off the ramp.

“That one’s a little like you,” Sirius whispered in Remus’ ear.

“I’m not that clumsy,” Remus protested, but it had no power behind it because, within seconds, he was laughing at the same goat again as it jumped around haphazardly.

Sirius grinned and dropped Remus’ hand so he could fish in his pockets for a quarter. “Here,” he said, handing it to Remus. Remus quirked an eyebrow, so he gestured to the feed dispenser. “You know you want to.”

Remus took the quarter and stuck it in the machine to get a handful of food, which he held out to Sirius. “Do you want some?”

Sirius shook his head. “Nah, you go ahead.”

Remus smiled and crouched down by the fence, and the goats swarmed him instantly. Sirius watched as Remus laughed and smiled at the goats fighting over the handful of kibble, taking a few snapshots that would probably end up as his phone wallpaper later. Not even a minute later, the food was gone, and the goats moved on to the next person with food—a pair of redheaded toddlers who’d appeared next to them while Remus had been distracted by the goats and Sirius had been distracted by Remus.

Remus washed his hands at the nearby sink, then slipped his hand into Sirius’ for them to walk back to the parking lot. Sirius glanced at Remus out of the corner of his eye and smiled softly before dropping a kiss to his curls.

“What’s that look?” Remus asked when they reached the bike.

“Nothing. This has just been a perfect day,” Sirius said.

“Well, it’s not over yet, right?” Remus asked, wrapping his arms around Sirius’ waist.

“I get you all day then? You don’t need to study?” Sirius asked.

Remus nodded. “Homework is all done, and I told Pete not to expect me back in the room tonight.”

Sirius grinned. “Well, then shall we go back to my room and recreate our other first date?”

Remus tilted his head and pressed a kiss to Sirius’ jaw. “What about James?”

“At Lily’s because Mary is at Fabian’s.”

“Then absolutely.”

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on [Tumblr](https://mooncat457writing.tumblr.com/)!


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